Asian Fourth World Battles Against Corporate Exploitation

The Asian Indigenous Peoples Pact , formed in 1988, “is a regional organization founded in 1988 by indigenous peoples’ movements. AIPP is committed to the cause of promoting and defending indigenous peoples’ rights and human rights and articulating issues of relevance to indigenous peoples. At present, AIPP has 47 members from 14 countries in Asia with 14 National Formations, 15 Sub-national Formations and 18 Local Formations.” AIPP just released a report titled “No Rights, No Justice: Experiences of Indigenous Peoples Affected by Corporate Activities,” highlighting the challenges faced by Fourth World peoples in Asia in the face of corporate development on their lands and territories.

Through case studies of six different states, the report exposes Fourth World/indigenous peoples’ battles against land and cultural dispossession despite international indigenous rights instruments like the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Legal recognition of Fourth World nations varies widely in Asian states from constitutional protection on one hand, to complete invisibility on the other. Even where constitutional protections exist, states’ development-centric commitments leave indigenous communities vulnerable to extractive industries and dam building. Cultural loss from forced relocations, deforestation, corporate farming (like oil palm plantations) and more are still widespread. Overall, Fourth World peoples are run over roughshod by corporations who are not held accountable by states to respect indigenous rights.